The Poverty Premium in Greater Manchester

Known as the ‘poverty premium’, it has long been understood that low income households in the UK face higher costs for certain items. Greater Manchester Poverty Action’s research, published in November 2018, shows that low income households in Greater Manchester could be paying more than £1000 over the odds for everyday goods and services compared to those on middle and higher incomes.

The extra costs are partly the result of variations in costs between different payment methods (e.g. people on low incomes are more likely to pay for energy through a prepayment meter), because people on low incomes are less able to buy in bulk or because of an inbuilt disadvantage within a marketplace (e.g. higher insurance premiums for people living in deprived areas).